On marketing.

On New Playing Field, Gatorade To Shed Calories

How does Quaker Oats Co.'s Gatorade intend to stay far ahead of the pack in the sports-drink category?

For one thing, with a diet Gatorade, a further refinement on Gatorade Light, which has been distributed primarily in Southern markets.

A diet Gatorade is in the works at Quaker, but this sweetened isotonic drink might not be available until at least the second quarter of 1995, sources report.

Gatorade Light, which comes in several flavors, including lemon-lime (the most popular of the eight Gatorade varieties), is sweetened with saccharin. Gatorade Light has about half the calories of regular Gatorade.

The diet Gatorade would have the NutraSweet aspartame sweetener, sources say. Currently, NutraSweet isn't available in any isotonic drink, but a source at Deerfield-based NutraSweet Co. says it can be used in such beverages.

However, the big problem has been the formulation of this drink, which would be substantially lower in calories than Gatorade Light. That drink also is low in sodium.

The formulation "has been a real sticky concern," says a Quaker insider.

Gatorade has a dominant position, selling more than 85 percent of what's said to be a billion-dollar sports-drink market, which has become flooded with contenders, including Coca-Cola Co.'s PowerAde and Pepsi-Cola Co.'s All Sport.

In supermarkets alone, Information Resources Inc. reports, Gatorade has grabbed nearly an 80 percent share of what was a $417 million sports-drink category for the 52 weeks ended Aug. 14. In that period, Gatorade sales were up more than 7 percent. PowerAde and All Sport each have shares of about 5 percent.

A diet Gatorade launched ahead of competitive drinks would give the brand another edge in maintaining leadership. In other beverage categories, such as soft drinks, diet versions have expanded consumption and gained a meaningful market share.

Quaker recently introduced an energy drink called SunBolt, which is said to be doing fairly well in markets in the Northeast, where it's currently available. Whether Quaker has plans for a diet version couldn't be determined.

This Budvar's for Busch? In some European markets, such as Great Britain, it's possible to buy Anheuser-Busch's Budweiser and a rival Budweiser brand produced by state-owned Czech brewer Budejovicky Budvar. But in Germany and Austria, Anheuser-Busch's Budweiser brand hasn't been sold because of a sales moratorium tied to a dispute between the U.S. firm and the Czech brewer. Now both sides say the moratorium, in place since 1990, is no longer in effect, having expired Sept. 30. What does this mean? Anheuser-Busch has tried and still is trying to buy a portion or all of the Czech brewer to gain entry for its flagship Budweiser brand into European markets in which it hasn't been sold. Or it could simply buy the Budweiser label from the Czechs by acquiring the trademark. Meanwhile, the Czech government has been considering a privatization of Budvar. It's not that the St. Louis brewer hasn't been trying to woo the Czechs into a deal, as Steve Burrows, president-chief operating officer of its Anheuser-Busch International operation has been spending an awful lot of time (and money) in the Czech Republic, wining and dining Budvar's bosses.

- Lionel "Lon" Kramer, who long headed public relations for AAA-Chicago Motor Club and recently has served as executive VP of the Des Plaines-based organization, was named president and chief operating officer.

Look for a decision in the next few days on the winner of True Value's $35 million broadcast advertising account. The finalists are Leo Burnett Co.; Dallas-based Publicis/Bloom, in tandem with Frankel & Co. here; and Italia/Gel, a Los Angeles agency. Italia/Gel has been rumored to have the inside track. However, "we haven't made a decision, and it's still wide open," said Chuck Kremers, director of advertising for Cotter & Co.'s True Value unit.